In this episode, you’re going to learn about a little talked about period of Edgar Allan Poe’s life in which he joined the military, attended West Point, and his exploits during this time. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast
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Abi K. asks: What does the postal service do when a package is mailed with no valid recipient’s address and no return address? According to the USPS, mail can be considered “undeliverable” due to a number of factors ranging from insufficient postage to the person it’s addressed to refusing to accept it. Regardless of the reason the mail cannot be […]
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Nineteenth century America was a good time to be inventor. With the right timing, invention, marketing, and patent, one could become rapidly rich. Elias Howe (the sewing machine), Samuel Morse (Morse code), and Cyrus McCormick (the mechanical reaper) were just a few of the pioneers who reaped the financial rewards of their business acumen. Despite being the inventor of one […]
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This Day In History: January 21, 1977 On January 21, 1977, during his first full day as president, Jimmy Carter fulfilled a promise he made during his campaign when he granted a pardon to Vietnam War era draft evaders. The president felt that “reconciliation calls for an act of mercy to bind the nation’s wounds and to heal the scars […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn how the U.S.’s eventual National Anthem became linked to baseball and sporting events, along with some other interesting facts about the creation of the Star Spangled Banner. [TRANSCRIPT] And as mentioned in the episode, if you’d like to learn more about Babe Ruth’s rather colorful life outside of baseball, you can do so […]
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This is a video from the very talented Brady Haran who, among other channels, produces phenomenal videos such as this one over at Numberphile, which you can subscribe to here. You can also join us in supporting Numberphile on Patreon here. If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: A Brief History of Pi The Origins of the Mathematical […]
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This is a video from the very talented Brady Haran who, among other channels, produces phenomenal videos such as this one over at Numberphile, which you can subscribe to here. You can also join us in supporting Numberphile on Patreon here. If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: The Origins of the Mathematical Convention of Using “X” as […]
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Gracen R. asks: Why is someone who is lazy called a couch potato? If you want to call someone lazy, a time-honoured way to do so would be to call them a “couch potato”. But why is it we compare lazy people to potatoes and why on Earth did some random guy own the trademark rights to such a silly […]
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This Day In History: January 20, 1968 It certainly wasn’t a case of love at first sight. Initially, Roman Polanski refused to speak to the equally unimpressed Sharon Tate. Even by the time they were on their second date, Roman’s idea of romance was jumping out at Sharon wearing a Frankenstein mask, scaring her to death. But rocky beginnings or […]
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Matthew L. asks: Who invented the rubber band? Cheap, reliable, and strong, the rubber band is one of the world’s most ubiquitous products. It holds papers together, prevents long hair from falling in a face, acts as a reminder around a wrist, is a playful weapon in a pinch, and provides a way to easily castrate baby male livestock… While […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn a whole lot of interesting things you probably didn’t know about Martin Luther King Jr. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast
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This Day In History: January 19, 1809 The tumultuous life of Edgar Allan Poe, the American writer, editor, and literary critic, began in Boston, MA on January 19, 1809. Poe was one of the early architects of detective fiction and is also considered a major contributor to the birth of science fiction. He was also among the first well-known American […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our popular Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Why Popcorn Pops First a little background, Popcorn or “zea mays everta” is a special kind of Flint corn, also known as “Indian corn” and sometimes “Calico corn”. Flint corn is readily recognizable as the kernels have a hard outer shell, […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn a little known fact about hemorrhoids- namely, that everyone has them all the time. (Yes, even you.) You’re also going to learn why that’s usually a good thing and a lot of other interesting facts about this oft’ lamented part of the human body, including how to prevent the inflamed version. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t […]
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This is a video from MinuteEarth created by Henry Reich et al. If you like TodayIFoundOut, odds are you’ll also greatly enjoy their videos. So go check them out and subscribe to their channel here. You can also join us in supporting their efforts to make more videos like this by donating via their Patreon page here. If you liked […]
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David A. asks: What exactly are smelling salts? Do they really work to wake up unconscious people? Smelling salts have been used for everything, from reviving those who have fainted to athletes needing a chemically-induced “wake up.” But what are smelling salts? Are they actually an effective medical treatment? How do they work? Are they toxic and dangerous? Smelling salts […]
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This Day In History: January 16, 1547 On January 16, 1547, 16-year-old Ivan Vasilyevich, Grand Prince of Moscow, assumed the Russian throne in the Cathedral of the Dormition, ushering in a new political era for the country – for better or worse. He demanded the title “Tsar of All the Russias” although he was in reality The Duke of Moscow. […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn about a terrifying disease that swept across the world, directly after the even more terrifying Spanish Flu Pandemic, resulting in over a million people dead and many of the survivors being left without the will to move or really express themselves in any way. You’re also going to learn what researchers think caused […]
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